The invention relates to toilets with flushing tanks in general, and more particularly to improvements in so-called ventilated toilets with apparatus for evacuating malodorous air from the bowl. Ventilated toilets of the type to which the present invention pertains are disclosed, for example, in commonly owned U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,800,596 and 4,880,027.
It is already known to evacuate foul smelling air from the bowl of a toilet by way of the flushing tank and to provide in the flushing tank a so-called odor barrier which prevents escape of malodorous air from the tank. It is also known to provide in the tank a duct which serves to receive malodorous air from the bowl, and to establish a odor barrier between such duct and the means for conveying air from the duct to a flue or the like. An advantage of an odor barrier which is installed in the tank is that the supply of flushing liquid in the tank can be used as an element of the odor barrier. The aforementioned duct can constitute a component of the means for opening and closing the valve which serves to admit flushing liquid into the bowl, i.e., this duct can serve several purposes. Such toilets are quite satisfactory because their odor evacuating apparatus can effectively prevent the escape of foul smelling air into the surrounding atmosphere. A drawback of presently known toilets of the above outlined character is that the odor barrier and certain other parts of the air evacuating apparatus are bulky, complex and expensive.